YOUTH ARE ALSO AGENTS OF PEACE:

Today almost half of the world’s population (48%) is under the age of 24, and of these
18% – or more than one billion people – are defined as youth. Youth in Uganda are the
youngest population in the world, with 77% of its population being under 25 years of
age.

There are 7,310,386 youth from the ages of 15–24 years of age living in Uganda 1. .
In order to promote and support the role of young people in peace-building activities that
contribute to peaceful co-existence, Coalition for Action on 1325 (CoACT) trained young
peace ambassadors on WPS to support NAP III implementation in Uganda. CoACT
organized a 2-day residential training of young women in leadership and conflict
resolution from the five districts and institutions of higher learning which took place on
29 th to 30 th , July 2020 at Nob view hotel in Kampala. The training had the following
objectives;
– Increase understanding and appreciation of the Women, Peace and Security and
Youth Peace and Security Agendas and foster discussions on the role of young
people in implementation.
– Increase the knowledge and skills of young people on conflict management,
mediation, communication and leadership skills for effective participation in
decision making and peace building processes.

From the discussions, young women prioritized some of the important ways to restore
and promote peace and security amongst themselves and these included; having a
growth mind set, developing innovative skills, educating communities about non-violent
means of resolving conflict, involvement in leadership, and awareness raising of human
rights.

As part of the action planning, the youth have organized and engaged other young
people in their communities to share the knowledge on women, peace and security
learnt from the training. “Brenda Akwiro and Sandra Amolo , participants from
Kaberamaido who study at Kyambogo University were part of the training, they have so
far organized 4 village engagements in Kanyanamu village (Kaberamaido District) of
young women (married and unmarried) and have trained them on gender based
violence and dangers of early marriages.

The training also helped youth to appreciate and understand the youth, Peace and
Security agenda and its relevance to the youth in Uganda. CoACT continues to engage

more youth in trainings on WPS and YPS in order to increase their knowledge and skills
on conflict prevention, conflict resolution and mediation processes.

1. United Network of Young Peacebuilders Report (2015)